EC Policy is still screwing hosts

[Jon58]

After over a year of the EC Policy put in place by Airbnb, it appears it is still screwing hosts.  As most hosts know, guests were issued full refunds and hosts got nothing and had to like it during the height of the pandemic last spring and summer.  This year, I thought we were turning a corner and the EC policy nightmare would finally be behind us all, but alas, I was wrong.

We recently had a guest reach out to cancel their reservation 14 days ahead of time, the guest contracted COVID.  Because of the EC policy, the guest is going to receive a full refund and we are left holding the bag.  With the vaccine being readily available at this time, why would Airbnb not require a proof of vaccination to be eligible for he EC policy?  At this point, it is either really bad luck or your own fault for contracting the virus.  At a minimum, provide hosts with a 50/50 split of the EC policy cancellations?

Once again, Airbnb gets us again.  Until someone steps up to provide an alternative, I guess we will just keep taking it.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Jon58 Do you really want Airbnb to financially encourage those with Covid to travel rather than cancel their reservation? I don't and so find the EC policy sensible especially as it allowed us to cancel a reservation when my daughter contracted covid and we were unable to host (safely or legally). Oh, and by the way, she was vaccinated!

[Jon58]

What I want is for Airbnb to make guests be involved in the risk of traveling.  If someone chooses not to get vaccinated, then they are taking the risks into their own hands.  Your daughter was vaccinated (good for her and you), you should be able to show Airbnb your vaccination card and be able to use the EC policy.  But, if you are not vaccinated, you should not be able to use the EC policy and you are subject to whatever the host sets up as their refund policy.  In theory, even if a person with COVID chooses to travel to not lose the money (highly unlikely), we as hosts along with our cleaners are following the proper cleaning recommendations and are unlikely to have the virus transfer from one guest to the next.  

Again, guests have, nor have they ever had, any risk.  Hosts are the only people losing.

[Emilia42]

@Jon58 How do you know the guest who canceled was unvaccinated? 

[Jon58]

I asked.

[Chris773]

Absolutely! I can’t believe this is not the practice yet. At least here in the USA, where vaccines are now universally available for anyone and everyone who wants one, if a guest chooses not to get a vaccination and then contracts Covid, that’s on them and hosts should not have to take it in the shorts. It’s kind of ridiculous at this point that we are still forced to lose out because of others’ poor decisions.

If a vaccinated guest ends up with a breakthrough case, I can understand the EC policy applying, but I’m going to be quite furious if Airbnb forces a refund for a guest who is supposed to checking in tomorrow and it turns out she’s unvaccinated.